The Washington Department of Revenue recently released a decision that the sale of rare coins was not taxable.

The taxpayer collected rare coins and wanted to know whether foreign and antique coins were taxable. These coins included metal coins from Rome, China, and Japan. The coins would not be made into jewelry or other works of art.

Washington does not tax sales of monetized bullion. Washington defines "monetized bullion" as coins or other forms of money that are (1) made from gold, silver, or other metals and (2) "heretofore, now, or hereafter" used as a medium of exchange under the laws of Washington, the United States, or any foreign nation. "Monetized bullion" does not include coins or money sold to be made into jewelry or works of art.

The Department decided that the coins were monetized bullion. Although the coins were sold as collector's items, the coins had been used as currency in the past. "Monetized bullion" included items that had "heretofore" been used as currency. Coins that were currency in the past were still monetized bullion. It did not matter that the coins were no longer used as a medium of exchange. The sales of the coins were therefore not taxable.

TTR has a website that companies subscribe to and use daily. This website provides a list of everything that can be bought or sold in the U.S. It provides simple answers to whether buying or selling these items is taxable (subject to a sales tax or other tax), and it provides all the legal authority to support these tax answers.

TTR likes to keep things simple and fun, which is why it has great people who provide help to clients on any support questions they have about transaction tax issues.